losing data

[Chris Bester]

Hi Colin

I have to disagree, every bank statement has a new opening balance which is the closing balance from the previous period.  The Gnucash balance sheet starts with the original opening balance and keeps on carrying that same balance forward.  I fail to see how you can say a balance sheet is not relative to a particular time.  It is exactly that, my balance sheet, at the end of my financial year, should have the balances that the year was started with, the activities in my accounts during the year and the balance that I end with.  Or somewhere we are talking past each other or using different terminology.  

Hope you can enlighten me

Chris

-----Original Message-----
From: Colin Law [mailto:clanlaw at gmail.com] 
Sent: 27 December 2013 10:50 AM
To: Chris Bester
Cc: Maf. King; gnucash-user at gnucash.org
Subject: Re: losing data

On 27 December 2013 08:30, Chris Bester <chrisbester at cybersmart.co.za> wrote:
> Hi Maf
> Hope you had a good Xmas.
> On the subject of balance sheets.  I agree that a balance sheet only makes sense when it is run to a specific date, however, it also only makes sense when it starts at a specific date.

No, a Balance Sheet is absolute, not relative to a particular time.
Consider your bank statement for example.  It shows the Current Balance as the amount in the account at a particular time, not the amount relative to the start of the year. If you want to know the difference in balance since the beginning of the year then you need a different report.

Colin